This week, the wine bar at Carousel becomes a Mexican restaurant, and there's a new pizza residency for Islington.
Cometa
Fitzrovia - 19-23 Charlotte Street, London W1T 1RW
Taking over what used to be the wine bar at Carousel is this contemporary Mexican seafood spot, which is influenced by the likes of Mexico City's Contramar and New York's The Four Horsemen. Carousel have long had a great relationship with Mexican restaurants, so this is absolutely one to watch. There'll be ceviches and aguachiles, with bigger dishes including crab chilpachole rice with brown butter. Meanwhile, the new drinks include a spicy margarita and a Mezcal Old Fashioned.
Opening date: 20 February 2026
Hot Saint Pizza at the Old Queen's Head
Islington - 44 Essex Rd, London N1 8LN
This popular pub on Essex Road is getting a new long-term residency in the shape of Hot Saint Pizza. It's run by an ex-Dough Hands chef, so that's giving us very high hopes for the pizzas here. There will be 48-hour fermented pizza dough using high-protein Canadian flour with pizzas including a Spicy Hawaiian, Meatball Ricotta and a Vodka Pesto. Look out for their pizza sandwiches too.
Opening date: 16 February 2025
This week's events
16-21 February (Notting Hill) - As black truffle season finishes, Phil Howard is holding a Truffle Week at Elystan Street, you can buy a truffle for just £35 and decide which dishes you want the chef to add it to.
17-18 February (Chelsea) - Dinings SW3 are bringing over Eliza Parchanska, Head Chef of Hotel Corazon in Mallorca to cook alongside Executive Chef Masaki Sugisaki for low-waste Gill to Tail dinners on the restaurant's sushi counter. Tickets are £120.
19 February (London Bridge) - A Tribute to the Masters: Mentorship Dinner with Chef Pierre Koffmann & Claude Lamarche will take place at Sollip in Bermondsey and will, Woongchul tells us be "reinterpreting the masters' great Gascon legacy through the eyes of their students at Sollip".
19 February (Chelsea) - Hans' Bar & Grill is having its first wine dinner event, with Nyetimber. The four-course dinner sees each dish paired with Nyetimber. Tickets are £65.
Here's what opened last week
Wild Izakaya (City of London) - The team behind Goodman have opened a massive izakaya right opposite their City restaurant
Bara (Peckham) - A Welsh-inspired cafe with great sandwiches
Osteria Vibrato (Soho) - The man behind The Laughing Heart opens an Italian restaurant in Soho.
Mama Li (Canary Wharf) - The latest from the Cantonese roasted meats restaurant group.
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